Marquez to fight Alvarado on May 17; winner to face Pacquiao-Bradley victor

Juan Manuel Marquez lost his last fight in October to Tim Bradley in a split decision. (Julie Jacobson/AP)

At 40, Juan Manuel Marquez is ready for another fight. Marquez (55-7-1) will take on Mike Alvarado (34-2) in a 12-round fight on May 17 at the recently refurbished Forum in Los Angeles, Top Rank Vice President Carl Moretti told SI.com

According to Moretti, the winner of Marquez-Alvarado will fight the winner of Manny Pacquiao-Tim Bradley -- who are scheduled to fight for Bradley’s WBO welterweight title on April 12 -- sometime in the fall.

Marquez, who has shown little interest in facing Pacquiao after knocking him out in the sixth round of their fourth fight in 2012, is motivated to fight the winner of Pacquiao-Bradley because it would present another opportunity to become the first Mexican fighter to win a major title in five different weight classes.

The Alvarado fight will be a homecoming of sorts for Marquez, who fought 12 times at the Forum in the 1990s. In his last appearance in the building, Marquez stopped Wilfredo Vargas in the second round in 1999.

Alvarado, 33, has not fought since being stopped by Ruslan Provodnikov in October. Alvarado, a former junior welterweight titleholder, struggled to make 140 pounds for that fight, needing two hours after the weigh in to get under the limit. That fueled speculation that Alvarado, best known for splitting two brutal slugfests with Brandon Rios, would move up in weight.